St Vincent De Paul Roman Catholic Church - Holiday Florida

Reading 1: Hebrews 10:19-25, Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 24:1-6, Gospel: Mark 4:21-25

Grant me, O Lord my God, a mind to know you, a heart to seek you, wisdom to find you, conduct pleasing to you, faithful perseverance in waiting for you, and a hope of finally embracing you. Amen.

Saint of the Day for January 28

(1225 – March 7, 1274)

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Saint Thomas Aquinas’ Story

By universal consent, Thomas Aquinas is the preeminent spokesman of the Catholic tradition of reason and of divine revelation. He is one of the great teachers of the medieval Catholic Church, honored with the titles Doctor of the Church and Angelic Doctor.

At five he was given to the Benedictine monastery at Monte Cassino in his parents’ hopes that he would choose that way of life and eventually became abbot. In 1239, he was sent to Naples to complete his studies. It was here that he was first attracted to Aristotle’s philosophy.

By 1243, Thomas abandoned his family’s plans for him and joined the Dominicans, much to his mother’s dismay. On her order, Thomas was captured by his brother and kept at home for over a year.

Once free, he went to Paris and then to Cologne, where he finished his studies with Albert the Great. He held two professorships at Paris, lived at the court of Pope Urban IV, directed the Dominican schools at Rome and Viterbo, combated adversaries of the mendicants, as well as the Averroists, and argued with some Franciscans about Aristotelianism.

His greatest contribution to the Catholic Church is his writings. The unity, harmony, and continuity of faith and reason, of revealed and natural human knowledge, pervades his writings. One might expect Thomas, as a man of the gospel, to be an ardent defender of revealed truth. But he was broad enough, deep enough, to see the whole natural order as coming from God the Creator, and to see reason as a divine gift to be highly cherished.

The Summa Theologiae, his last and, unfortunately, uncompleted work, deals with the whole of Catholic theology. He stopped work on it after celebrating Mass on December 6, 1273. When asked why he stopped writing, he replied, “I cannot go on…. All that I have written seems to me like so much straw compared to what I have seen and what has been revealed to me.” He died March 7, 1274.

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Reflection

We can look to Thomas Aquinas as a towering example of Catholicism in the sense of broadness, universality, and inclusiveness. We should be determined anew to exercise the divine gift of reason in us, our power to know, learn, and understand. At the same time we should thank God for the gift of his revelation, especially in Jesus Christ.

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Saint Thomas Aquinas is the Patron Saint of:

Catholic Schools
Colleges
Schools
Students

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January 27 marks International Holocaust Remembrance Day and stands as the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

Reading 1: Hebrews 10:11-18, Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 110:1-4, Gospel: Mark 4:1-20

O Jesus, lover of the young, the dearest Friend I have, in all confidence I open my heart to You to beg Your light and assistance in the important task of planning my future. Give me the light of Your grace, that I may decide wisely concerning the person who is to be my partner through life. Dearest Jesus, send me such a one whom in Your divine wisdom You judge best suited to be united with me in marriage. May her/his character reflect some of the traits of Your own Sacred Heart. May s/he be ...

Reading 1: Hebrews 10:1-10, Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 40:7-8, Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 40:2, Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 40:10-11, Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 40:4, Gospel: Mark 3:31-35

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth. O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord. Amen.

One year ago, the world lost Kobe Bryant, one of the best basketball players on record. Although known for his talents on the court, Bryant was also a devout Catholic whose faith transformed his life.

Reading 1: Acts of Apostles 22:3-16, Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 117:1-2, Gospel: Mark 16:15-18